John Rogers, the Digbeth native believed to be the first to translate and print the bible in English.
Born in 1505 in Deritend in Birmingham, today a part of Digbeth, John Rogers attended school in what is today The Old Crown Pub.
After leaving school, Rogers graduated from Cambridge, and then went over to Europe, finding a wife in the Netherlands and befriending members of the Protestant Reformation in Germany.
Rogers is believed to be the first person to translate and print the New Testament Bible in English. Under Henry VIII, he became a notable figure in England. However, with Queen Mary I following Henry’s reign, and restoring Catholicism, Rogers was arrested and trialled for denying the Church of Rome.
Refusing a pardon, Rogers was burned at the stake on 4 February 1556.
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Read more of our blogs on Birmingham's historic sites, including the history of Dudley Castle, the Founding Father in the West Midlands, history of Birmingham's Gun Quarter & Gandhi's visit to the second city.